


You Complete Me

by gaytriforce



Category: Hunger Games Trilogy - Suzanne Collins
Genre: Canon Divergent, Character Change, F/M, M/M, ballad of songbirds and snakes, mlm
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-13
Updated: 2020-07-13
Packaged: 2021-03-05 03:14:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,541
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25237546
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gaytriforce/pseuds/gaytriforce
Summary: Coriolanus realizes he can be a better person, as long as he has Sejanus by his side.
Relationships: Coriolanus Snow/Lucy Gray Baird (mentioned), Sejanus Plinth/Coriolanus Snow
Comments: 17
Kudos: 61





	You Complete Me

**Author's Note:**

> Essentially, Coriolanus Snow's character arc resolves in the absolute opposite direction from how it did in canon.

“Sejanus!” 

The way Coryo says his name shocks him almost as much as the staggering embrace that comes after.

Laughter bubbles up in his chest. “This is a surprisingly warm welcome for the person who almost destroyed you!”

He makes light of the situation, but his fears are well founded. Sejanus is terrified that Coriolanus will only remember the way he constantly led them both into danger.

The laugh that Coryo gives is striking, his normal self control abandoned. His smile is a beautiful sight.

“No, no, quite the opposite.” Sejanus mourns the loss of his arms, but accepts with excitement the opportunity to see his face again. “What are you doing here?”

What is he doing here?

  
  
  


_ Months ago _

_ “Getting a workout this morning?” _

_ Sejanus curses his luck at the sight of Coriolanus, sophisticated and standing tall in his handsome shirt. He needs to keep his emotions in check today, not go running after a crush like a lovesick fool. _

_ “Always an honor to be of service.” He responds, giving a smile he hopes takes the edge off of his sarcasm.  _

_ Coriolanus nods to the shield. “That’s a fine polish job.”  _

_ He isn’t sure what to think about that remark. Is it an insult? A jest? Even after ten years in the Capitol, Sejanus still isn’t wired to understand their mind games. _

_ His brief moment of thought must come off as tension, because Coriolanus shoots him a smile. “I should know. I do all Satirya’s wine goblets.” _

_ “Really?” He asks in relief, trying to find a way to relate. _

_ “No, not really. But only because she hasn’t thought of it,” Coriolanus remarks. _

_ Sejanus sighs, knowing his low status has earned him a lackluster job. “Professor Sickle thinks of everything. She doesn’t hesitate to call me, day or night. And, of course, now that I’m graduating, we’re moving closer to the school. Perfect timing, as usual.” _

_ Coriolanus’s ever-present mask of indifference gardens as he quirks an eyebrow, seemingly vaguely interested. Sejanus wishes he could see behind it. “Whereabouts?” _

_ “Somewhere on the Corso. A lot of those grand places will be going on the market soon. Owners not being able to afford the taxes, or some such, my father said.” _

_ He feels the shield slipping and heaves it back up, feeling stupid and unathletic next to lean, toned Coriolanus, who gives off an air of intellectual superiority at the moment. _

_ “They don’t tax properties in the Capitol. Only in the districts.” He says, as if this is obvious knowledge. _

_ Sejanus resists the urge to roll his eyes. Coriolanus has always been too self righteous for his own good. “It’s a new law to get more money for rebuilding the city.” _

_ For just a second, Coriolanus loses his structured composure, fear shooting across his face.  _

_ Sejanus wants to reach out, place a hand on his arm, but he’s always been a coward, so he only says “You alright? You just went white as a sheet.” _

_ Quickly regaining his calm expression, Coriolanus stands a little taller, though still a few inches under Sejanus’s own height. “I think it’s the posca. Turns my stomach.” _

_ Knowing it was the mention of the taxes, Sejanus searches for an out, something to take the home off himself for bringing it up. _

_ “Yeah. Ma was always forcing it down me during the war.” He says lamely, staring down at the shield. _

_ Coriolanus seems to buy it, his sharp gaze disappearing under a veil of thought. Sejanus watches as his sleek features turn focused, noticing as the gentle breeze pushes one curl aside. _

_ He’s distracted when the bells go off, telling the student body to meet in front of the dais, and he’s pulled from his fantasies of blond hair and light blue eyes to face the horrors of reality. _

_ Sejanus’s mind searches for the real reason he’s here, the factual reason, the reason that hides how he would follow Coriolanus to the ends of the earth.  _

  
  


“Hm. Let’s see. Having defied the Capitol by entering the arena, I, too, was on the verge of expulsion. My father went before the board and said he’d pay for a new gymnasium for the Academy if they would let me graduate and sign up for the Peacekeepers. They agreed, but I said I wouldn’t take the deal unless they’d let you graduate, too. Well, Professor Sickle really wanted a new gym, and she said what did it matter if we were both tied up for the next twenty years anyway?”

The realization that dawns on Coriolanus’s face is like the sun lighting up the horizon. “I got to graduate?”

Sejanus locates the diploma, holding it out to Coriolanus and feeling his heart stop when their fingers brush. “Congratulations. You are no longer a dropout.”

He watches Coryo flip open the diploma, examine it, and rest his fingers over the phrase High Honors.

“Thank you. I guess it’s stupid, but it still matters to me.”

Sejanus smiles at him, his mind far away. To tell him, and let the officer candidate test carry his heart away to District Two, or to not tell him, and watch his heart rot away in District Twelve?

He remembers the day he found his heart. The day it all began.

  
  


_ Years ago _

_ “You gonna mine some rocks for us, Two? Gonna build my house one day while I sit on a velvet chair?” _

_ Sejanus looks down at his feet, the new shoes pinching his toes, and he wishes he was home. _

_ The new classmates taunt him just as much as the old. At home, teased for being a Capitol pet. Here, teased for being district scum. _

_ “Go back where you came from, pig! No one wants you here! No one likes you!” _

_ Everything they say is true but that.  _

_ One boy sits alone, poring over a book as his classmates surround Sejanus. His brow furrows as he focuses on the reading. _

_ Sejanus doesn’t understand the way his heart quickens. He doesn’t understand why his gaze seeks out the blinding white of Coriolanus’s hair, the icy blue of his eyes. _

_ At least someone leaves him alone.  _

  
  


“You know, if you ever wanted to take the officer candidate test, it might matter. You need to have graduated secondary school. Dean Highbottom brought that up as something that should be denied you. He said you broke some rule in the Games to help Lucy Gray? Anyway, he got outvoted.” 

Sejanus chuckles, contradicting the impending fear at the thought of Coriolanus whisked away on a hovercraft, never to be seen again. “He’s really wearing on people.”

“So I’m not universally reviled?”

If only he knew how much one universe seemed to revolve around him.

“For what? Falling in love?” Sejanus hates to think of Coryo’s bond with Lucy Gray as love, but it’s the only thing keeping them in Twelve. “I think more people pity you. A lot of romantics among our teachers, come to find out. And Lucy Gray made a great impression.”

The hand gripping his arm is warm, strong, and the only grief he feels are at the words that accompany it.

“Where is she? Do you know what happened to her?”

Sejanus shakes his head, wishing he had information to comfort him. “They usually send the victors back to their districts, don’t they?”

The guilt on Coriolanus’s face is deep and shameful. “I’m afraid they’ve done something worse to her. Because we cheated in the Games. I tampered with the snakes so they wouldn’t bite her. But all she did was use rat poison.”

The information is new, slightly surprising. “So that was it. Well, I haven’t heard anything about that. Or about her being punished. The truth is, she’s so talented, they’ll probably want to bring her back next year.”

“I thought of that, too. Maybe Highbottom was right about her being sent home.” Coriolanus sits, suddenly exhausted, but emotionally or physically Sejanus can’t tell. “You know, when you came in, I was weighing the merits of suicide.”

Shock hits Sejanus like a stack of books. He’s not surprised by the sentiment, but he is deeply pained. Intelligent, special, complex Coryo condemning himself to death? Sejanus’s mind races back to when he left his own life on the line.

  
  


_ Months ago _

_ “You really can’t stop rescuing me, can you?” _

_ His soft laugh is a breath of life in the dark landscape of horror that Sejanus has become accustomed to. “Can’t do it.” _

_ “They sent you in to fish me out? What madness.” He says, gaining the strength to stand. “Did you ever see a dead body?” _

_ “A lot. During the war.” Coriolanus answers, moving to stand next to him. Sejanus can feel the warmth of his side without them touching. _

_ “I haven’t so much. Not this close. At funerals, I guess. And at the zoo the other night, only those girls hadn’t been dead long enough to stiffen up. I don’t know if I’d rather be burned or buried. Not that it matters, really.” _

_ He says a silent prayer to whatever twisted god might be out there, asking it to save this boy from Sejanus’s path of self destruction. _

_ Coriolanus is silent for a moment, contemplating what he means. “Well, you don’t have to decide now.” _

_ “Oh, it won’t be up to me. I don’t know what’s taking the tributes so long to find me. I must have been in here awhile.” He looks down at Coriolanus, feeling the weight of the situation for the first time. “You should go, you know.” _

_ “I’d like to. I really would. Only there’s the matter of your ma. She’s waiting out front. Pretty upset. I promised I’d bring you to her.” Coriolanus looks up to him, his face like stone in the moonlight. _

_ Sejanus feels his own expression crumble. “Poor Ma. Poor old Ma. She never wanted any of this, you know. Not the money, not the move, not the fancy clothes or the driver. She just wanted to stay in Two. But my father . . . Bet he isn’t here, is he? No, he’ll keep his distance until this is settled. Then let the buying begin!” _

_ “Buying what?” _

_ “Buying everything! He bought our way here, bought my schooling, bought my mentorship, and he goes nuts because he can’t buy me,” Sejanus looks at Coriolanus, full of regret and self pity. “He’ll buy you if you let him. Or at least compensate you for trying to help me.” _

_ His next words, however fake they may be, are like medicine to his broken heart. “You’re my friend. He doesn’t need to pay me to help you.” _

  
  


He has to say something, say anything, to mask his pain. 

“What? Now? When you’re finally free from the clutches of Dean Highbottom and the evil Dr. Gaul? When the girl of your dreams is in reach? When my ma is, at this moment, packing a box the size of a truck full of baked goods for you? My friend, your life has just begun!”

Coryo’s laugh is bright relief, so full of life it allows Sejanus to laugh alongside him. “So this isn’t our ruin?”

“I’d call it our salvation. Mine anyway. Oh, Coryo, if you only knew how glad I was to escape,” Sejanus says, turning grave. “I never liked the Capitol, but after the Hunger Games, after what happened to Marcus . . . I don’t know if you were kidding about suicide, but it was no joke to me. I had the whole thing worked out. . . .”

The pain that flashes across Coriolanus’s face at his words is worrying. He grabs Sejanus’s hand, unfamiliar and exciting. “No. No, Sejanus. Let’s not give them the satisfaction.”

Sejanus glances down to their joined hands, his cheeks turning pink. Coryo is staring right at him, like he’s going to say something, but he only breaks the contact after a moment too long and breaks into an explanation of their new life, leaving Sejanus lonely and wondering.

  
  
  


“It’s all just ideas at this point.” Billy Taupe says, kicking at dirt with his shoe. “After how they took Lil.”

Sejanus nods grimly. “But you’ll get word to me once anything is set in stone?”

“Sure,” Billy Taupe answers. “This is a good meeting place. I know it’s far out, but it can hold a lot of people, and there’s no danger of detection out here.”

They look around the clearing, at the lake, the small house, the bountiful plants. “Who knows about this place?” Sejanus asks.

Billy Taupe’s face hardens. “Some old friends of mine, that’s all.” He doesn’t elaborate, standing and brushing the dirt off himself. “You can find your way back?”

“Yeah,” Sejanus says. “Wait, Billy Taupe.”

“Hm?”

He thinks for a moment. “You think I could come out here on my days off? Y’know, cool water and all.”

“I don’t see why not. Just cover your tracks.” Billy Taupe responds. “I’m off. Glad I found you poking around the Hob.”

“Me too.” Sejanus replies, more focused on the birds overhead than anything else. That is, until an idea comes to mind.

He makes his way back to base, walking into the mess hall and taking his seat next to Coryo right as dinner starts.

“Where were you?” His friend asks, nudging him in the arm. “The box came from Ma. All the other guys can’t wait to get into it.”

“I wanted to check out the shops during the day. See if there’s anything worth doing on Sundays.”

Coriolanus nods, his mind somewhere else. Sejanus pokes his shoulder. “What are you thinking about?”

He shakes his head. “You know how the Commander wants us to go to that hanging?”

“Mhm.” Sejanus replies, digging into his food.

“Just wondering what that’s all about.”

  
  
  


Sejanus leans his head on the window of the truck after the hanging, thoughts swirling through his mind.

Coryo’s voice interrupts. “What do you think about suggesting we use those birds for target practice?” 

“What?” Sejanus responds, turning to look at him, realizing too late how close their faces are.

But Coriolanus doesn’t seem to notice their closeness, talking animatedly about his idea to propose they take a squad to the woods and shoot the birds down.

He watches him talk, a small smile growing on his face, a far cry from his earlier gloomy expression.

“So what do you think?” Coryo asks, his face still lit up with the boyish charm of confidence in originality.

“I’d go. A lot of people probably would.” Sejanus responds, shooting him a half smile.

And he knows he shouldn’t feed his friend’s ego more than he already has, but he can’t help but take an opportunity to see that self assured smile. “It’s a good idea. You really should be an officer.”

A shadow crosses Coriolanus’s face. “I don’t know if they’d let me.”

“What? That’s ridiculous. You graduated from the best secondary school in the country.” Sejanus lowers his voice, leaning in ever so slightly. “And no one here knows who we are. They’ll have to let you take the test.”

“If they let me take it, they’d let you, too.” He responds, giving Sejanus an uncharacteristically hopeful look. “I did some looking through the manuals. They have medical positions.”

Sejanus looks at him doubtfully. “Coryo, I don’t know. I wanted to be a medic so I could help the people, too, but becoming an officer? I can’t support the system anymore than I already have.”

Coriolanus nudges him. “Think about it. I don’t want to leave you here, by yourself.”

He thinks about how he wouldn’t really be alone, how there are dozens of other peacekeepers in twelve, people he lives with and sees every day. But he knows Coryo is right. 

What’s left between them goes unsaid for the rest of the ride, but the lingering energy between them proves something is still left to say.

  
  


“Have you heard anything about Lucy Gray?” Sejanus asks, pulling the uniform shirt over his head.

“I honestly haven’t thought about it,” Coriolanus responds, tugging off his pants. “There’s been a lot on my mind.”

Sejanus raises an eyebrow, turning to make a remark, and stopping midmotion at the sight of his very shirtless best friend.

Coryo shoots him a confused look, turning to pull on his fatigues, and Sejanus has to turn in the opposite direction in order to avoid his eyes moving south.

“We can go poking around Sunday, if you want.” He responds, buttoning his shirt and willing his cheeks to go back to their normal color.

“I don’t know. I feel like that part of my life is over. Everything that happened...” Coriolanus trails off, turning back to look at Sejanus. “I don’t know.” He repeats, looking at the ground.

Sejanus is stunned. He’s seen real displays of emotion from Coryo maybe twice before. Everything else has been carefully hidden behind a mask of conscious superiority. Underneath it, he’s a completely different person.

“I feel like we were in the arena, that whole time. Even though we really were there, the stakes were so high, that... I don’t know.” He throws his hands up, looking back at Sejanus.

“I felt like I had to do everything to get Lucy Gray to win, because if she did, I did, too. It was all to get that prize, to get to University and show the world the best version of myself.”

His voice drops with his gaze. “Now, I can’t believe it, but I’m a better person. Still a pretty terrible one, but better. I think.”

Uncertainty, a rare note for him, is pressing in his speech. Sejanus looks over at him, thinking about the powerful boy he had feelings for, and wondering what he’d think of this emotionally aware man Sejanus has fallen in love with.

“You’ve never been a terrible person.” He responds.

Coriolanus scoffs. “I’ve always been a terrible person. Always presenting one way or another, never acting as a real person.” He meets Sejanus’s eyes. “Even now, I’ll never have the courage you do. I can’t stand up to anything.”

Sejanus sits on his bunk, patting the spot next to him. Coryo takes the seat next to him, their legs just touching.

“You know, I could always tell that there was something else you were thinking.”

Coriolanus looks at him in surprise, but Sejanus doesn’t give him a chance to speak.

“You put on a good act. But I’ve been observing you for a decade. I know your face.”

He watches as Coriolanus’s cheeks flush, a sign of his emotions flooding through his carefully constructed guard.

“I could tell you never really liked me. Once we got older. But that wasn’t what bothered me. You don’t like anyone, really. It was the reasons you didn’t like me.”

Sejanus meets Coryo’s gaze. “For some reason, I feel like it’s different now. I don’t know. Maybe I’m just a piece of home for you.”

They’re facing each other now, and when their ankles cross, Sejanus can feel his heart racing.

“No. You’re more than that.” Coriolanus breathes, and they’re so close, staring at each other in the damp, dark room.

“Let’s crack into that box, Bulls Eye!” The loud call comes from the doorway, and they spring apart at once.

“Sure, Smiley.” Sejanus says easily, standing from the bed and walking over to where the box is. He spares one glance at Coryo, who looks back at him through his eyelashes.

_ Well, shit, _ Sejanus thinks.

  
  


“Are you going to tell me where we’re going, or do I have to figure it out on my own?” Coriolanus asks from behind Sejanus.

“Let me make sure we get where we’re going in peace and quiet,” he replies.

He hears Coryo’s laugh, bright and high. “Alright, boss.”

They walk in relative silence until they come upon the lake. Sejanus turns to face Coriolanus, holding out a hand.

He takes it with just a half second of hesitation, lacing their fingers together.

They sit next to the lake, comfortable in the soft leaves. Sejanus unlaces his boots and puts his feet in the water, rolling up the cuffs of his pants.

He laughs at Coryo’s expression. “Come on. Nothing’s going to bite you.”

Sejanus takes his hand again, leading it to the surface of the water. Once he feels the cooling waves, Coriolanus quickly follows suit and takes off his own boots.

They float for a while, unspoken energy buzzing at their joined hands. Sejanus looks down at Coriolanus, who meets his gaze, and for a moment, everything is still.

It’s Coriolanus who leans in first, pressing their mouths together in a rush of pressure and softness. They move together, sharing each other’s air, until the overwhelming heat of the moment pulls them apart.

Sejanus nearly sighs at the sight of Coryo, pink and breathless, sitting before him. He leans in and quickly presses a kiss to his jaw, pulling back as swiftly as he came.

Coriolanus flushes redder at that. “How...” he tries to say, trailing off into elated laughter. “How long?”

“Ten years.” Sejanus answers without hesitation. “Coryo, I think... I...”

He pushes back Sejanus’s hair, watching a drop of water from his hand drip down his face. “I love you.” He says simply.

“I love you, too.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading this! Let me know if you enjoyed it in a comment as comments fuel my soul.


End file.
